Gap around an inset door

[Tom Peterson]

I am doing the last of the ciphering for the kitchen cabinets. I am wondering if the gap around an inset door is a common measure. If I use a non-mortise hinge, it would define the gap to be the thickness of the hinge. But, I have not picked out my hinges so I am wondering what you use? Also I am going to use an applied bead molding for a more traditional look. Any tips or suggestions? thanks as always

[Dave Richards]

I don't have any suggestions regarding the width of the gap but consider that it needs to be large enough so that the inside edge of the door opposite the hinge clears the cabinet face frame.

[tod evans]

i try to leave the thickness of a dime, but that`s only a goal to shoot for.when using full mortise hinges i set all my doors tight then trim to fit using the largest gap as the benchmark. it`s better to backbevel the striker side than to have to large a reveal. most shops install their cockbeading on the frame not the door, makes the door much eaiser to adjust. good luck, tod

[Scott Parks]

Just leave enough gap for wood movement... DAMHIKT

[Jim Becker]

Scott brings up an important point...wood movement. WHEN you build the doors will make a difference in sizing them!! If you are building when things are "warm and wet", you can leave less gap. If you are building when things are "cool and dry", you need to leave a bit more so that the doors don't get too big for the opening. What species/materials you use are also a factor.

Making a door smaller later on is a pain in the butt. Trust me on this... ;)

[Jamie Buxton]

Making a door smaller later on is a pain in the butt. Trust me on this... ;)

But making it bigger is even more difficult! :)


Tom, the reason that built-in cabinets are commonly an overlay door style is that inset doors are challenging, and overlay doors are very forgiving. For instance, when you install your cabinet boxes in the kitchen, the boxes may get distorted from the shape they were in the shop. The distortion may well be as big as Tod's dime. When I've done inset doors in built-in cabinets, I've built them large, installed the boxes, tuned each door and drawer front to fit it's opening, and then taken them back to shop for finishing. Even with that, you still have to hope that the house itself doesn't have seasonal movement. If you have doors in the house which fit in one season but stick in another, that's suggesting that the house is moving. The same movement may make the new kitchen doors stick. In this case, a larger gap around the doors may save you. And, of course, overlay doors conceal the house's movement with much less hair-pulling.

[Tom Peterson]

thanks for the input so far. Jim Becker, I believe that you have inset doors for at least a season, how have they faired? I was planning on using a paint grade maple for doors and frames. Since they are painted, is there a more stable choice for mositure that will still give a good painted finish? Also, the overlay doors would be easier, but I do not think you can beat the look of an inset cabinet.

[Bert Johansen]

Tom,

This is why the raised panel was created. Or non-raised panel. By creating a floating panel in the door you solve the problem. And you can still do an inset door. My old mentor, a grizzled cabinetmaker, always used pennies to judge the gap.

Bert

[Mike Vermeil]

Tom,

While I still prefer the look of a true mortised-in butt hinge, if you're outfitting an entire kitchen, the euro-style cup hinges would save you an enormous amount of time & headache. I've used no-mortise hinges some in the past, and am never very happy with the results. To me they just look cheasy.

As far as wood for the face frames, rails and stiles, I usually use poplar, which is cheaper and much easier to machine than maple, and also takes paint very well.

[Jim Becker]

This is why the raised panel was created. Or non-raised panel. By creating a floating panel in the door you solve the problem. And you can still do an inset door. My old mentor, a grizzled cabinetmaker, always used pennies to judge the gap.

Not true, Bert. All of my doors are frame and panel and it's the FRAME that expands in the opening. That's why it's important to size based on time of year/location.

[Keith Christopher]

I've always used pennies. Good ole Abe hasn't let me down yet.

[Mark Singer]

The space should be the same at all sides.......

[brent lenthall]

Tom,

I build nearly all my cabinets with inset doors and beaded face frames. Depending on my timeline, I build or outsource doors 3/16" undersized in each dimension. This leaves 3/32" gap per side. I use euro hinges so I have room to adjust if needed.

I you are doing an applied bead I would suggest attaching the short pieces first and then cutting the longer pieces slightly oversized and "bowing" the bead to fit snug in the face frame opening.

brent